My Precious Kitten
by ChihiroAyasato
Summary: Walking home on a stormy day, Diego passes by the animal rescue centre and sees her. Hearing that she will be put down by the end of the day, he adopts her out of the goodness left in his heart. Much to his surprise, however, she isn't an ordinary kitten
1. Furry Affection

**My Precious Kitten**

**Chapter 1 – Furry Affection**

"Mia, for goodness sake, stay away from the papers!"

A twitch of her ears as she turned her furry face to face him, she cocked one of them to the side.

"Mew?"

"How many times do I need to tell you? I don't want paw marks on those documents!" Armando reached forward to grab her out of harm's way, only to miss completely as she leapt lightly unto the carpeted floor.

"Mew."

"Oh for crying out loud; you're just as stubborn as she was." The words lodged in his throat quite unexpectedly and he fell silent.

_How stubborn _she _was. Who was this _she_ again?_

Great. Just great.

The last thing the prosecutor needed was some major flashback to some other beautiful fantasy about his beloved…

…

He couldn't even think the word.

"Bah. I'm pathetic, aren't I?" He scoffed and looked down at his new pet.

"Why did I adopt you in the first place again…?"

"Mew." The kitten blinked.

_Because it reminded him so much of…her._

_The way her sad eyes stared out from behind the animal rescue centre glass._

_It rendered me speechless, and tugged at my heart._

_The last kitten remaining in that basket._

"Yeah, that's right. Just keep smirking at me like I'm some idiot."

"Miaow!" The cat swatted its paw suddenly at his arm, leaving light marks on his tanned skin.

"Ouch! What was that for?" He growled and went back to his desk and paperwork.

"I don't want another word out of you, you hear?"

"Mew."

"Oh shut up."

She purred.

He was pissed.

Very pissed.

"Look. I'm trying to get ready for the trial tomorrow. Could you PLEASE give me some space so that I can work?"

"Miaaaooowww…" She gave a huge yawn and walked out the room with her and ears and tail down, clearly disappointed and hurt.

Diego Armando sighed.

He hadn't wanted to make her upset.

…

But which one was this 'her'?

The kitten he had found left alone in the centre?

Or someone else much more close to his heart?

At once, he felt regret for chasing the small thing out the room and went after her.

"Look, I'm sorry about that…You okay?"

She had run back to him in an instant and was going in between his legs, purring softly.

Diego managed a soft smile, a genuine smile.

It was the first time he had actually managed to smile since he woke up.

Mostly, he just smirked coldly whenever he needed to.

He glanced at the wall clock in his office and noticed that it was already five.

"I guess we should take a break." He recalled the fact that they had been working for about five hours straight now.

Wait…'they'?

He sighed, running a hand through his white hair.

"How does a dish of cream sound, Mia?"

"Mew!" She jumped up at him happily and miraculously leapt onto his chest, causing him to walk back several steps in shock at the kitten's agility.

He regained his composure as she nuzzled his chin with her furry head, her purrs vibrating through her small body.

Diego reached up to stroke her gently. Her fur was almost the same texture as his pupil's hair, only shorter. But still so soft and silky.

And if he closed his eyes and opened his mind, he could almost pretend that it was actually _her_.

Holding his face against hers with her arms around him tightly.

Her lips gently pressed to his face.

But when he looked down at the soft bundle on his chest, it was only a kitten that was licking his cheek endearingly.

Just…an ordinary kitten.

"Mew…" she yowled softly to him.

"Alright, alright…" He chuckled and carried her tiny figure towards the cafeteria.

"Let's go get that cream."

"Mew!" she nuzzled him once more and closed her eyes.

And then Diego felt warmth in his heart for the first time in many years.


	2. You Look Just Like Her

**Chapter II – You Look Just Like Her**

"_Mia…come back!"_

"_N-No…! L-leave me alone…AH!"_

_She fell to the floor with a gut wrenching thud after tripping over her own legs and fell to the ground in tears._

_They both stayed where they were, panting wretchedly._

_Diego realised that they had run all the way back to the office._

_Was that physically possible?_

_But it didn't matter right now._

_Mia, his pupil and the woman he had failed to protect, was badly hurt._

"_G-Go away…I d-don't need you to look d-down on me…" she whispered and curled into a ball, her eyelids red and puffy from crying and her clothes stained with tears._

_Diego stared at her with a twisted pain in his heart._

_It hurt._

_It hurt more than the shards that were digging into his flesh._

…_even more than the fact that his hand was completely ruined from crushing his favourite mug…_

"_Mia. Please…I want to help…"_

"_WELL, YOU CAN'T! DON'T YOU UNDERSTAND THAT?" She suddenly turned to him and glared, her pupils almost seemed like slits, contrasting the gentle hazel warmth that he always felt when she looked at him._

"_YOU CAN'T DO ANYTHING ABOUT IT. SO…JUST…GO AWAY!" Mia screamed out the last few words and collapsed into a heap on the floor, weeping silently._

"_M-Mia…" He said again weakly…pleadingly._

_But he knew better to go near her and offer comfort._

_So he could only sit at a distance…and watch his pupil cry herself into unconsciousness._

* * *

"That witch…" he whispered without thinking.

"Mew?"

"O-Oh…nothing" He tilted his head downward to see her lick his tanned hand in concern. Her whiskers were glistening drops of white from the cream.

"Mew…" The kitten he had thus dubbed Mia placed two paws onto his legs and looked up at him.

Diego took in her physical features for the first time.

She had a shiny brown pelt, with a tanned patch stretching from her neck down to along her belly. Her paws were all white, save one, the front left paw, which was an odd, almost golden orange. Her tail was long, flexible and ebony black. And she had tiny little white dot like clumps of fur close to her ears.

Mia seemed to enjoy all the attention and rolled onto her back, purring and leaning against him, as if she were asking to be stroked.

"You sure are a suck up, aren't you, little missy?" He teased and scratched her ears, which she seemed to enjoy immensely.

"Mew…"

Her eyes were a hazel brown and full of so much warmth and innocence.

How could he let anything unspeakable happen to her?

She was to be touched by nothing but the softest of hands.

With that thought, he gently rubbed her belly; which closed her eyes in bliss.

After stroking the kitten's furry stomach for a while, he began dozing off himself.

* * *

"Eugh…I'm so BORED!" Maya stretched her arms up high and slumped against the office couch.

"Can't we go out and get something to eat, Nick?"

"For the last time, whilst you have nothing to do…I myself have a trial tomorrow so stop acting like this is a vacation!" Phoenix was almost buried amongst all the paperwork he was sorting into his court record and sounded very irritated.

"Mystic Maya, I think Mr. Nick is quite busy at the moment…Are we allowed to go out ourselves?" Pearl looked up from cleaning her steel samurai bouncy ball and eyed her cousin with a curious gleam in her eyes.

"Hey, that sounds like a great idea, Pearly! Quick, Nick! Give me your wallet!"

"WHAT? You expect me to trust YOU with my early empty wallet? No way, you're not getting anywhere near it!" And in the act of hiding his precious money holder from his assistant, several sheets of paper were knocked to the floor, which Pearl diligently picked up.

"Don't worry, Mr. Nick! I'll make sure Mystic Maya doesn't buy anything too expensive!" Pearl clasped her hands together happily.

She was finally going to spend some quality time with her beloved cousin alone!

"…Fine. Here." He took out all the big notes of money and then handed them the wallet.

"Thanks so much, Nick!" She gave him a quick hug and then grabbed Pearl's hand to pull her out of the office.

"Yeah, sure…Tell me that when you've paid me back…" He looked up from his work and suddenly noticed that even after Maya and Pearl had left, he wasn't alone in the office.

"Hmm? Where did you come from?" He left his work desk and knelt down to her level.  
"And how on earth did you get in here?"

"Mew."

"Huh…you look familiar…" He noticed the kitten's pelt colour.  
"You certainly do remind me of someone…"

"Mew?" She nuzzled him gently and yawned slightly.

"Are you lost? I'm sorry but I'm not allowed to have cats in the office. One of my clients may be allergic to cat fur."

"Mew…"

Phoenix felt extremely guilty as he lifted up the kitten and carried it to the door.

"Here, go back to where you came from…"

"Mew." She dipped her head at Phoenix and gave him what looked like a furry smile, then walked down the stairs.

"Huh…the way it looked just then…it couldn't be…" He sat down on his desk and suddenly saw a photo he had taken with…_her_ before she had left.

Phoenix looked up suddenly to the open door, a shocked expression on his face.

"…C-Chief?"

* * *

"Where did you go? I was worried sick!" Diego sighed with relief and scooped her into his arms.

"Mew."

"Just because I fell asleep, doesn't give you the liberty of wandering wherever you want to go."

"Mew…" She let one of her short ears droop slightly and Diego couldn't do anything but reluctantly forgive her.

"Where have you been, anyway?"

The kitten hopped gracefully out of his hands and placed a paw on an old case file.

Diego's eyes widened in surprise when he saw the photo of the defendant of that certain case.

"T-Trite..? You were at TRITE'S OFFICE?"

"… Mew." She sat on the photo of Phoenix as a university student and began to groom herself.

"H-How did you even KNOW where that was? Even I don't know the exact location of his stupid firm!"

"Hisssss."

Diego jumped back slightly, even more surprised to see the ball of fur glare at him for the first time since they had met.

"What…you LIKE Trite?"

"Mew…" She turned her back to him with a swish of her tail and held her head high in the air.

"_**Gee, thanks, Diego. Just because you like the taste of this coffee doesn't mean the whole world does."**_

_This kitten…no, it couldn't be…._

She turned to look at him with her eyes still narrowed, yet there was the slight hint of a smile on her face.

"_**I, for one, don't think I can digest blend #46."**_

He suddenly held her close to him, causing her to yelp in surprise and stared at her intently.

"…Mia?" He croaked.

And she knew he hadn't meant the pet name he had given to her.

But that he was addressing someone much more dear to him.

"…Mew." She said simply and leaned against him, a paw on his chest.

"Y-You…You're really…" he couldn't bring himself to finish the sentence and ended up sitting on the office couch with her cradled gently in his arms.

After a few heartbeats, he realised she had fallen asleep and sighed endearingly.

"I better go to the pet store to buy you some supplies. Especially a litter box since you'll be staying here in the office from now on." He murmured and slowly got up, afraid that he'd wake her.

A sudden memory flitted across his mind as he removed his office key from the door to head down the stairs to his parked car.

* * *

"_Mia?"_

_There was no response from her still form slumped across her work desk._

_He walked quietly over to her and saw her sleeping form spread over numerous sheets of paper on the case she'd been working on._

"_Did you fall asleep whilst working again, Kitten?" He sighed, affectionately ruffling her hair with his hand.  
"You really do work too hard. Keep this up and you'll fall ill."_

_Diego took off his jacket and draped it over her shoulders, making sure she didn't catch a cold._

"_Mmm…G-Go away…" She sleepily mumbled._

"_Huh…?"_

"…_I…don't want coffee right now…"_

_Diego chuckled softly and let his hand fall from her hair to her cheek, which he caressed lightly._

_He had long stopped denying that he was falling in love with this woman._


	3. Growing Suspicion

**Chapter 3 – Growing Suspicion**

"_**M-Mia…?"**_

_**Diego Armando stared at her dead body, slumped against the wall and unmoving. The magatama she always wore around her neck was slightly cracked and glowing feebly.**_

"_**No…this can't be true…!" He neared her and placed a hand on his already cold shoulder.**_

_**As soon as he did so, she jerked up.**_

"**WhY? YoU pROMised me…thAt we WoulD taKE doWn ThE wiTch togeTher…" She moaned and clung onto him, with a bloody hand.**

_**Diego doubled over with nothing short of absolute horror and tried to back away, only to notice there were red hands coming at him from beneath the floor, from **_**everywhere**_**…pulling him deeper and deeper into the carpet…**_

"ARGGHGHHH!"

"YEOOOWW!"

He sat upright in bed, his whole body sweating bullets, he whipped his head around to find something huddled against him and shivering violently.

"Oh God…I'm so sorry, Mia." He realised only then that she had been the source of the yowling and was terrified out of her wits from his sudden awakening.

He raised a shaking hand to stroke her fur, which effectively calmed her down.

"M-Mew…" She managed and poked out her head from under the quilt to gaze at him with fright.

"I…just had a nightmare, that's all." He said weakly and collapsed back into bed.

The image of her live dead body still burned into his irises.

"That…oh my God…" He murmured and trembled.

"Mew." She seemed to sense his agitated feelings and crawled onto his chest, where she curled up and yawned softly.

"Thanks…" He realised she was trying her best to comfort him and scratched her behind the ears, causing her to purr gently.

After almost an hour, Diego Armando finally fell into an uncomfortable sleep.

Which is why the prosecuting attorney didn't notice a small, graceful figure leave the room in silence.

* * *

"Look, Nick!"

"Huh?"

"Meow!" She mimicked the small animal's cry and grinned happily.

"…"

Phoenix stared at the familiar little bundle of fur Maya was holding up before her.

"…We can't keep a cat in the office, Maya. Get rid of it." He said tonelessly, effectively concealing his feeling of guilt at once again rejecting the kitten.

"B-But…! We found it wandering around the streets on our way to fetch milk from the market!" Little Pearl said with tears ready in her pleading eyes.  
"We can't just abandon it!"

Phoenix sighed and scratched his spiky hair.  
"Look…I know it's mean of me but there's no way it can stay here…"

"It's a she, Nick! Not an 'it'!" Maya puffed out her cheeks and pouted.

"Anyway, cats smell, they scratch things…and worst of all, they have fur… meaning that someone who comes to me for a case may be allergic to them, and hence disrupting the small business that we're running!" He finished with a satisfied grumble and flopped back into his seat behind a mountain of waiting work.

"…" Maya suddenly grew silent and kneeled to the ground, picking up the still kitten and holding it close to her chest.

"I-I…I'll go get some milk for the kitty!" Pearl sensed something was wrong and hurriedly left the room, not knowing what else to do as her tiny heart beat about in panic.

"This cat…" Maya began softly, tears prickling in her eyes.  
"…is just like her."

Phoenix blinked and stood up all too quickly.

"Maya…?"

"This cat…is just like Sis."

"Wh-what are you talking about?" Phoenix shivered as his suspicions were confirmed.  
So it wasn't just him who thought the cat reminded him of his former chief…

"She…just is. I know. I know because…she was my sister!" Maya finished lamely and hung her head.

The kitten blinked and licked the side of Maya's cheek softly, her black tail swishing back and forth.

Phoenix gave in and sighed heavily as he walked towards the two of them.

He placed a gentle hand on Maya's shoulder.

"How about this…we keep her until we find her owner?"

"R-Really? Thanks so much, Nick!" Maya lit up at once, and though there were still tears present in her eyes, looked more cheerful than she had been in the past month.

Phoenix managed to smile back at her.  
"Yeah. Once I'm finished with all of my work, we'll make some posters stating that we've found a lost kitten and…"

"That won't be necessary."

The two of them jumped at the unexpected deep voice at the entrance to the office and both looked up to see the bright outline of the prosecutor's visor.

"M-Mr. Godot?" Maya cradled the kitten close to her chest, almost protectively.

"What are you doing here?" Phoenix's voice held much more strength as he stood up to face Diego.

"…Give Mia back."

"I…what?" He was just about to question what the coffee addict was doing in his office at so early in the morning when he suddenly heard his chief's name.

"Y-You thought that this kitten looked like Sis too, didn't you?" And for once, Maya acquired a piece of information faster than the shocked defense attorney.

Phoenix only then noticed that there was a travel pet cage in Diego's hands.

"She belongs to you, right?" Maya continued, almost bouncing up and down in happiness.

"…That has nothing to do with you. Now, give her back."

Maya blinked and her cheerful demeanour faded away as fast as it had come.

She hesitantly handed back 'Mia' to Diego, who almost snatched the kitten from the trembling spirit medium.

"She came over yesterday as well." Phoenix finally managed to compose himself and said stiffly.

He wasn't sure why he decided to mention that fact.

"…I know." Diego growled.  
"And I honestly don't understand WHY she would choose to go to you of all people, seeing as you're the reason she's…ARGH!"

The prosecutor clutched his now bleeding hand as the kitten landed on the carpeted floor agilely and hissed at him.

"M-Mia…!" He realised with shock that she had bitten down on him hard and was hissing at him in fury.

Her tail and ears twitched back and forth as she stared around the room with her bright eyes, and then leapt onto Phoenix's desk.

"H-Hey! Get off there!" He yelped in surprise and ran towards her hastily.  
"Those files are important!"

She ignored his outburst but did take care as she leapt onto his seat.

…only to freeze altogether after falling onto the daily newspaper.

Phoenix cocked his head to the side and tried to catch a glimpse of what was on the daily bulletin, but not before Diego seized his chance and grabbed her from behind, pushing her roughly in the cage that he was holding.

She yowled and scrabbled against the cage bars with her claws in fury.

"M-Mr. Godot, please be gentle with her, she's…"

"None of your business." He finished for her scathingly and left the office without another word.

The office was uncomfortably silent.

Pearl chose that moment to walk in with a bowlful of warm milk.

"This should be enough, right? …Mystic Maya?"

She stopped and blinked at the unnatural scene before her.

Maya had fallen onto the floor and was clutching the magatama she always wore around her neck, whilst Phoenix was desperately trying to smooth the creases on the newspaper that had caused the kitten to double over.

"…Where's the kitty?" she managed softly.

Phoenix ignored her and stared, almost crashing into his desk when he finally realised what Mia had been looking at.

"Nick?" Maya croaked feebly, wiping her tears hastily away.  
"What's wrong?"

"E-Eh? Nothing…" He managed pathetically and hastily tucked the paper away.

Not fast enough for Maya, who snatched it from his grasp and glanced hastily at it before he could retort.

"What is it, Mystic Maya?"

The older spirit medium shook her head slightly with confusion.

"Not sure, Pearly."

She looked up at Phoenix with a cocked eyebrow.

"What's the big deal?

**It's just a picture of a girl with braided hair."**


	4. Apology Not Accepted

**Chapter 4 – Apology Not Accepted**

Mia didn't speak or show any sign of Diego's existence for a full day.

It was obvious that she was still furious with him for that morning's incident.

"Look, I'm sorry, alright?" The coffee addict sighed and failed once again to grab her as she leapt from his work files, deliberately leaving paw prints all over the paperwork.  
"What was I supposed to do? You know very well that I have a grudge against that Trite…and you just HAD to go to HIS office of all places!"

She licked her paw and drew it around her ear to clean the white clumps of fur around it, and then made her way to the door with her head held high.

"What, you're going there AGAIN?"

The kitten showed no sign of hearing him and left the building.

"Damn this!" Diego fell onto his couch and tore off his visor, throwing it upon the floor and groaning loudly.

**"Why am I so bad at being good?"**

* * *

**Apologies for the short chapter.  
**

**I've been feeling very down lately but felt the need to update this story since many people are following it.  
**

**Hope I wasn't a disappointment.  
**

**The next chapter's going to be much longer.  
**

**I promise.  
**


End file.
